FR: How has the changing market affected the development finance market?
We have found that even though the high street banks are under pressure by the government to be lending more, this is in fact far from the truth. We have recently seen a huge influx of clients that have been left dismayed by the lack of liquidity in the market and some have, unfortunately, been left in rather tricky situations. It’s great that at Regentsmead have our own funds to lend and we have been able to move extremely quickly on every deal that is brought our way. That’s why we are busier than ever.
FR: What have been some of your company's key milestones over the past couple of years?
In the past we have looked to double our loan book each year which we have achieved. As a result we have looked to push the boundaries of what we can achieve, for example, as well as increasing our social media presence we are now responding to the demands of our broker partners by putting on a free seminar in the Spring. The response to this has been fantastic and as this is now fully booked we are looking at repeating this event later in the year.
FR: What does 2013 hold for you?
As we gear up for our 80th year we expect this to be Regentsmead’s biggest year yet. We have appeared at more events than ever and we want this to continue past our broker seminar and into the summer with some key exhibitions such as the Commercial Finance Expo. Another award or two to add to the cabinet wouldn’t go amiss either and the feeling in the office is that the whole team is fired up to be lending as much as possible.
FR: What challenges do you feel are most affecting brokers in the current market?
We like to work very closely with our broker partners and we have had some great feedback from some of our schemes so far this year. So far this year we have helped over 200 brokers with some free marketing which they were able to tailor to their requirements and then send to their potential clients. The response we have had from this was excellent and found that we were able to help our brokers drum up more business during what is traditionally a slow time of year. As planned, we have found plenty of this new business landing on our desks.
FR: What do you predict for the development finance market in the next 12 months?
I think other lenders may come out their shells and start to lend more as the market picks up and confidence returns. I don’t see the high street banks becoming active for quite some time yet, and that puts us in an exceptional position as we have plenty of experienced builders to provide immediate development finance with. As the market picks up we hope Regentsmead becomes busier and busier.
FR: You have won several awards as the Best Development Lender – what sets your apart from your competitors?
That’s an easy one! We get fantastic feedback on our personal and hands on approach. We have had cases recently where clients have come to us after paying commitment fees to other lenders who have turned round at the last minute and told them that they have no money to lend. Being one of the only lenders that lends their own funds put us in an extremely strong position as we are able to provide decisions in minutes, finance in days and of course are extremely flexible to the clients needs. Our record so far is 7 days getting a loan out and we are very much looking to beat that target!
James joined the group in 1987 and initially had a role within the property management division. When the short term lending was established in the early 1990s James moved across and quickly progressed to head up the division. James has substantial property and finance experience and together with his team ensures the lending process is as smooth as possible from the initial enquiry through to redemption.
